


Love Looks with the Mind

by NoOneKnowsIWriteThis



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: A Stitch in Time - Andrew Robinson, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Covers from before the series to shortly after The Wire, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-01-26
Packaged: 2019-03-09 15:05:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13484034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoOneKnowsIWriteThis/pseuds/NoOneKnowsIWriteThis
Summary: “There's someone out there looking for you, Julian,” Palis had said, pressing a kiss to his lips and then his mark. “I'm not going to steal you from them.”





	Love Looks with the Mind

**Author's Note:**

> Here's how this AU works:  
> \- Marks are the first thought that your mate has upon seeing you  
> \- Marks are in the native language of the person who bears the mark, regardless of their mate's native language (Garak's mark is in Kardasi while Julian's is in whatever you'd like his native language to be)  
> \- Soulmates can read each other's marks even if they don't know each other's language  
> \- Only about half of people have marks  
> \- Marks are not 100% destined. Your mark will fade away if you miss your mate and they move out of your life

Garak's mark didn't appear until he was already well on his way to joining the Obsidian Order. That wasn't uncommon. Marks could fade in and out depending on so many things. It did mean, however, that he'd have to take extra care to conceal the Kardasi script twining its way around his ankle, especially since this mark in particular provided plenty of information.

“It's _**the spy!!!**_ Stay calm, Julian. You are a Starfleet officer. You can handle this.”

Garak sighed as he reread those words, the first thought his mate would have upon seeing him. This Julian seemed to think quite quickly.

He let out another sigh as he pulled on his sock. An enemy officer, what a hilarious prank the universe was playing on him.

So Garak kept his mark covered and tried to ignore it. And yet, he couldn't quite help himself when Starfleet visited Cardassia for talks. He looked into every single one of them, even the ones who weren't officers, but there was not a single Julian among them. At least, according to their personnel files. It was still possible that one of them was using a false name...

–

Julian had had his mark for as long as he could remember. Longer even. When he was fifteen he'd gone back and checked the few old photos from before Adigeon Prime that his parents hadn't destroyed. The words wrapped around his wrist were exactly the same.

“He's gorgeous. I'm going for it.”

It was completely useless in terms of identifying his mate. They could be anyone who showed interest in Julian. So Julian accepted most of the invitations that were directed his way, hoping that maybe this time it would turn out to be his mate. Not that he minded when they weren't, since it usually led to incredible sex anyway, but there was a part of him that ached when each new partner inevitably moved on.

He'd tried for a while to convince himself that Palis was his mate. The fact that she, like roughly half the universe, didn't have a mark just meant that the universe had made a mistake. But when he told her that he was thinking about leaving Starfleet to stay on Earth with her, she'd ended things.

“There's someone out there looking for you, Julian,” she'd said, pressing a kiss to his lips and then his mark. “I'm not going to steal you from them.”

–

It turned out that Hans Jordt was not Garak's Julian. If he had been, Garak's mark should have faded when Hans left Cardassia, never to return.

Garak pushed Julian out of his mind. Then there was the mess with Palandine and Barkan and Bajor, and Garak found himself exiled to a space station that was about to fall into Federation hands.

He found his thoughts drifting more and more to Julian, the Starfleet officer, his mate. If they were to meet at any point in their lives, it would likely be here where, as the only Cardassian left on the station, Garak would be assumed to be a spy as a matter of course.

Garak told himself that he was regularly checking the crew postings for the newly rechristened Deep Space 9 because he wanted to be informed about the station's new owners, not because he was searching for his mate. And yet, he couldn't deny that his heart skipped a beat when he saw the listing for the station's newly appointed Chief Medical Officer: Julian Bashir, a lieutenant junior grade in Starfleet.

–

Julian had chosen Deep Space 9 for many reasons. That it was far away from his parents, Palis, and the heart of the Federation were just part of it.

He'd wound up traveling with the station's new science officer, Lieutenant Jadzia Dax. She was a joined Trill, which he found absolutely fascinating. And she didn't seem to be immediately attracted to him, which meant that she likely wasn't his mate.

Honestly that was something of a relief. After how things had gone with Palis, Julian didn't want to even think about his mark or his mate for a while.

Maybe he could convince Jadzia to give him a chance. It didn't have to be anything serious, just a few nights together perhaps while they were both still adjusting to the station.

–

It was child's play for Garak to find out when the CMO was set to arrive on the station, and nearly as easy for him to hide nearby so he could watch this Julian Bashir unobserved.

Julian Bashir was young, tall, and slender with large, expressive eyes and an eager smile. Garak thought he was gorgeous, and in that moment Garak decided that he would approach Julian. Ideally soon, since, if the way Julian was trailing after the Trill science officer was any indication, it didn't seem like Julian was the type to wait patiently for his mate to appear.

Garak's opportunity arose nearly a week later when he saw Julian sitting alone in the replimat. As Garak introduced himself, he could almost see the words of his mark as Julian thought them, the young doctor's face was so transparently expressive.

Before Garak left, he allowed himself the indulgence of laying his hands on Julian's shoulders. Oh yes, this was his mate. He just had to wait for Julian to recognize it as well and the young man would come charging after him.

–

After Garak left, Julian, still feeling completely overwhelmed from being approached by a Cardassian spy, went charging off to Ops. As he tried to determine what Garak could possibly want from him, he quickly focused on espionage related ideas, completely missing any possible motivation that could have been related to his mark.

Yet he still found himself drawn to Garak. Julian tried to convince himself that it was because he was simply curious and he had a long-established fascination with spies and espionage. But as every week he found himself anticipating their shared lunch more and more, it became harder for Julian to believe that excuse.

Then Garak became ill and refused Julian's help until Julian finally approached him in his quarters and promised that he would help Garak through his withdrawal.

–

When Julian had approached Garak in Quark's and slyly suggested that they move somewhere quieter, the one thought that had made it through Garak's pained, drunken mind was _“Finally!”_ It didn't matter that Julian had the worst timing, at long last the young man had come to his senses and recognized his mate.

Of course, that had all been a ruse on Julian's part. It wasn't until Julian pursued Garak to his quarters that Garak was willing to accept Julian's help.

At the height of his withdrawal, Garak had tried to drive Julian away, even as he longed to pull him closer.

Perhaps Garak had been mistaken, perhaps sweet, determined, caring Julian had a different mate out there waiting for him. Someone worthy of Julian's affection. Even if Garak was truly Julian's mate, perhaps it would be better this way, for Julian to discover it after Garak's death when the mark faded and the kind young man was no longer tied to a former Cardassian interrogator, torturer, and assassin.

But that kind young man dashed all of Garak's planned self-sacrificing by staying through it all and only leaving in order to find a way to fix the damage Garak had done to his own body.

–

Julian tried to tell himself that going to the Arawath colony was just part of his job, his duty to do his best to save lives. Yet he had to admit to himself that this was probably far more _and_ far more dangerous than what he would have done for just about any other patient.

There had been something strange about Tain's expression when he greeted Julian as a lieutenant rather than as a doctor. It was almost as if the retired spymaster was amused by him.

After Garak was safe and recovered and had told Julian that he'd rather pretend the whole thing never happened, Julian returned to his quarters to finally get a full night of sleep. Before he drifted off, he allowed himself to admit that he was in love with Garak.

–

Strangely the topic of soulmates and marks wasn't one that they'd really discussed before. Garak hadn't even brought it up. It was Julian's complaint that had raised the topic during one of their usual lunches in the replimat.

“I can't stand the way this author describes soulmarks,” Julian stated. “It's one of my least favorite conventions: this view that marks are these incredibly clear things that straight out tell you who your soulmate is. When really they serve more as guides than contracts. It's still entirely possible for you to miss your soulmate. And that's assuming they're straightforward. It's actually not that uncommon to have a mark that's so vague it's practically useless.” He scoffed, then lay his arm on the table and rolled up his sleeve just enough to reveal a single line of text that ran around his wrist. “'He's gorgeous. I'm going for it.'”

Garak didn't need Julian's translation to know what it said. That was one of the mysterious things about soulmarks, your mate could read it even if they couldn't read your native tongue. However, the revelation of Julian's mark did explain why Julian hadn't yet realized that Garak was his mate.

Garak smiled, forcing himself to maintain a calm appearance. “Mm, I can see how that mark could be unhelpful,” he said lifting his leg so that his ankle rested on his other knee. With as much nonchalance as he could manage, Garak lifted his pant leg and rolled down his sock. “I find myself in a similar position.” He gestured to the mark on his ankle. “This could be anyone.”

Julian slid his chair around the table so he could get a better look. Garak saw the exact moment that Julian realized he could read the Kardasi script and watched Julian unconsciously mouth the words: “It's _**the spy!!!**_ Stay calm, Julian. You are a Starfleet officer. You can handle this.”

Julian let out a soft noise of shock, his eyes fixed on Garak's mark.

“Yes, it's so unclear,” Garak said lightly, unable to keep from teasing.

Julian lifted his head and turned those beautiful, expressive eyes to stare incredulously at Garak. “You knew all this time?!”

“Knew what, my dear?” Garak smiled back, the picture of innocence.

Julian's mouth fell open in astonishment. “You are so frustrating!” he exclaimed before leaning forward and crashing them into a kiss. When they pulled back, Garak found himself in a bit of a wonderful daze, while Julian seemed to have recovered from his shock. Julian stood, pulling Garak up with him.

They were halfway across the promenade before Garak thought to ask “Where are we going?”

“My quarters,” Julian answered, a giddy smile on his face. “We're going to make up for lost time.”

 


End file.
